THE COUNTRY.


Cos, dey's happy, playing' on harps; but seems
as if dey might like to know what's goin' on
yere. So I comes and tells 'em sometimes.
Cos, I talks most 'bout 'ligion,-'ligion belongs
to dead folks; I s'pose it would n't be righteous
to talk of nothing' else. I tells 'em who 's got
'ligion in church. Cos, it's only de Wash-foot
Baptists church dat I go to yit awhile. When
I gits growed up, and gits to know everything,
I 'se a goin' to de Mefodists-- it's more polite
at de Mefodists. Yes, soon as I gits 'ligion, I
'se goin' dere. But first, I 'se goin' to learn
everything. I 'se goin' up norf so as to git all
de learning' der is. What does I think 'ligion is?
Well, it's bein' pious, as you might say; least,
dat's how you know if you've grace, grace
dat's done come to stay, ef you 's pious.
But, law! when you 'se gittin' 'ligion, you ain't
stopping' to be pious, always. I seen 'em when
dey gits it; mostly, dey kick up dere heels, and
cuss, and swar, and git happy. Dat's 'ligion.
Cos, afterwards, dey's pious. So dey says.
But mos' generally, mos' often, dey don't show
pious."